Identification and Analysis of Points of Diversion along the Lower Colorado River in Support of Decree Accounting Active
In the United States, the Colorado River Compact of 1922 apportions the waters of the Colorado River between the upper basin States and the lower basin States (U.S. Congress, 1948, p. A17-A22). The requirement for participation of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) is stated in Article V. Water in the lower Colorado River is apportioned among the States of California, Arizona, and Nevada by the Boulder Canyon Project Act of December 21, 1928 (U.S. Congress, 1948, p. A213-A225) and confirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court decree, 1964, Arizona v. California in terms of consumptive use. The decree is specific about the responsibility of the Secretary of the Interior to account for consumptive use of water from the mainstream; consumptive use is defined to include "water drawn from the mainstream by underground pumping."
The Decree requires the identification of the users of Colorado River water and publication of the quantities of diversion and consumptive use stated for each diverter, point of diversion, and State. The BOR (1965-2004) publishes an annual report that contains records of diversions and consumptive use of water by individual water users. Much of the hydrologic information contained in the annual report is furnished by the USGS (Condes de la Torre, 1982, p. 5-7). A method is available for identifying wells that yield water that will be replaced by water from the river and wells that yield water that will be replaced by water from precipitation or inflow from adjacent tributary valleys (Wilson and Owen-Joyce, 1994; Owen-Joyce and others, 2000).
Accounting for the consumptive use of Colorado River water withdrawn from the river aquifer by wells requires that updated information for each well within the boundary of the river aquifer between the northeast end of Lake Mead to the international boundary with Mexico (see map) be collected in order to apply the accounting-surface method, which is used to identify those wells that yield water that will be replaced by water from the river.
Implementation of the method to identify wells along the lower Colorado River that yield water that will be replaced by water from the river will enable the Secretary of the Interior to fulfill a responsibility to account for consumptive use of water from the mainstream by underground pumping. The updated data set will provide the needed framework from which to investigate other hydrologic concerns and produce interpretative hydrologic products such as more current water-level maps in areas where sufficient data are available and maps that show zoned areas where static-water levels are, for example, more than 50 feet above the accounting surface needed for management decisions.
Objective
Present accounting for consumptive use of Colorado River water is incomplete because the existence and location of all points of diversion is not known. Of the more than 4,000 wells previously identified between 1960 and 1993, information such as the ownership, elevation of water level, use of water, disposal of unconsumed water, and well construction information generally require updating. A precise position is required for all new sites in addition to those previously identified in order to assure that the correct site is revisited for future data collection. River pumps are a direct diversion of water from the mainstream of the Colorado River and need to be included in accounting for diversions under the Decree and for consumptive use.
The objective of this work is to identify and locate wells that have the potential to pump water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River and river pumps that pump directly from the mainstream; and to acquire, record, and store for future retrieval, the data and information needed to determine or "presume" if a well is pumping water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River and therefore included in the accounting of Colorado River water use mandated by the Decree. USGS will identify sites in the area from the mouth of the Grand Canyon at Lake Mead to the southerly international boundary with Mexico that exist within the river aquifer as defined in the accounting surface methodology reports (Wilson and Owen-Joyce, 1994; Owen-Joyce and others, 2000).
Approach
Identify, locate, collect required data, and enter into the Geological Survey National Water Information System (NWIS) (or successor) database wells with the potential to pump water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River, along with data necessary to determine or "presume" if these wells are indeed pumping water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River, and data which will assist in estimating the type and quantity of water use. River pumps will be identified and located; required data will be collected in a manner similar to wells. A photograph of each well and river pump will also be recorded and stored in a database for future retrieval to assist in returning to the well or river pump. Data collected will be used in the analysis required to determine or "presume" if the well is pumping water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River, the type of water use, and assist with estimating the magnitude of water use.
The USGS project manager attends meetings at Reclamation’s request to provide technical and scientific coordination with Reclamation staff, other agencies, and the public. Under the supervision of the project manager, the USGS will send trained technicians into the field to,
- coordinate with appropriate permitting agencies as needed to obtain locations of known permitted well sites;
- visit identified potential well sites and collect data at wells that have been drilled or record that no well has yet been drilled;
- investigate areas for signs of development that indicate water use, and identify and collect data at wells and/or river pumps in use in those areas;
- photograph each well/river pump and measure water levels in wells in the areas where the accounting surface was developed and access is possible;
- enter wells and river pumps into the Geological Survey NWIS database (or successor database) without creating duplicate sites in the database;
- determine when data collection for all sites in an area is completed and identify (with input from Reclamation) subsequent areas for data collection, and plan effective strategies to meet project objectives;
- determine (with input from Reclamation) wells to be instrumented for continuous water-level data collection, purchase equipment as needed, construct and install instrument protective housing at well sites, collect and process data, store data in NWIS;
- continue to collect, process, and store data from wells already instrumented for continuous water-level data collection;
- prepare maps showing altitude of the water table and areas where the water table is more than 50 feet above the accounting surface after precise differential GPS data collection is completed; maps will be published on the web and merged with the data on the interactive web page;
- prepare an interactive web page to visibly display the data collected and merge with the accounting surface maps developed previously in cooperation with Reclamation;
- report progress to Reclamation, coincident with Geological Survey project reviews and create annual work plans for the coming year with input from Reclamation.
Below are publications relevant to this project.
Update of the Accounting Surface Along the Lower Colorado River
Investigation of recent decadal-scale cyclical fluctuations in salinity in the lower Colorado river
Conceptual and numerical models of dissolved solids in the Colorado River, Hoover Dam to Imperial Dam, and Parker Dam to Imperial Dam, Arizona, California, and Nevada
Characterization of the quality of water, bed sediment, and fish in Mittry Lake, Arizona, 2014–15
Initial characterization of the groundwater system near the Lower Colorado Water Supply Project, Imperial Valley, California
Potential depletion of surface water in the Colorado River and agricultural drains by groundwater pumping in the Parker-Palo Verde-Cibola area, Arizona and California
Discharge and sediment concentration in the Bill Williams River and turbidity in Lake Havasu during and following high releases from Alamo Dam, Arizona, in March and April 2010
Sediment Transport in the Bill Williams River and Turbidity in Lake Havasu During and Following Two High Releases from Alamo Dam, Arizona, in 2005 and 2006
Use of Superposition Models to Simulate Possible Depletion of Colorado River Water by Ground-Water Withdrawal
Update of the Accounting Surface Along the Lower Colorado River
Hydrologic conditions in the Bill Williams River National Wildlife Refuge and Planet Valley, Arizona, 2000
Method to identify wells that yield water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River downstream from Laguna Dam in Arizona and California
Identifying wells downstream from Laguna Dam that yield water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River, Arizona and California
- Overview
In the United States, the Colorado River Compact of 1922 apportions the waters of the Colorado River between the upper basin States and the lower basin States (U.S. Congress, 1948, p. A17-A22). The requirement for participation of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) is stated in Article V. Water in the lower Colorado River is apportioned among the States of California, Arizona, and Nevada by the Boulder Canyon Project Act of December 21, 1928 (U.S. Congress, 1948, p. A213-A225) and confirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court decree, 1964, Arizona v. California in terms of consumptive use. The decree is specific about the responsibility of the Secretary of the Interior to account for consumptive use of water from the mainstream; consumptive use is defined to include "water drawn from the mainstream by underground pumping."
The Decree requires the identification of the users of Colorado River water and publication of the quantities of diversion and consumptive use stated for each diverter, point of diversion, and State. The BOR (1965-2004) publishes an annual report that contains records of diversions and consumptive use of water by individual water users. Much of the hydrologic information contained in the annual report is furnished by the USGS (Condes de la Torre, 1982, p. 5-7). A method is available for identifying wells that yield water that will be replaced by water from the river and wells that yield water that will be replaced by water from precipitation or inflow from adjacent tributary valleys (Wilson and Owen-Joyce, 1994; Owen-Joyce and others, 2000).
Accounting for the consumptive use of Colorado River water withdrawn from the river aquifer by wells requires that updated information for each well within the boundary of the river aquifer between the northeast end of Lake Mead to the international boundary with Mexico (see map) be collected in order to apply the accounting-surface method, which is used to identify those wells that yield water that will be replaced by water from the river.
Implementation of the method to identify wells along the lower Colorado River that yield water that will be replaced by water from the river will enable the Secretary of the Interior to fulfill a responsibility to account for consumptive use of water from the mainstream by underground pumping. The updated data set will provide the needed framework from which to investigate other hydrologic concerns and produce interpretative hydrologic products such as more current water-level maps in areas where sufficient data are available and maps that show zoned areas where static-water levels are, for example, more than 50 feet above the accounting surface needed for management decisions.
Objective
Present accounting for consumptive use of Colorado River water is incomplete because the existence and location of all points of diversion is not known. Of the more than 4,000 wells previously identified between 1960 and 1993, information such as the ownership, elevation of water level, use of water, disposal of unconsumed water, and well construction information generally require updating. A precise position is required for all new sites in addition to those previously identified in order to assure that the correct site is revisited for future data collection. River pumps are a direct diversion of water from the mainstream of the Colorado River and need to be included in accounting for diversions under the Decree and for consumptive use.
The objective of this work is to identify and locate wells that have the potential to pump water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River and river pumps that pump directly from the mainstream; and to acquire, record, and store for future retrieval, the data and information needed to determine or "presume" if a well is pumping water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River and therefore included in the accounting of Colorado River water use mandated by the Decree. USGS will identify sites in the area from the mouth of the Grand Canyon at Lake Mead to the southerly international boundary with Mexico that exist within the river aquifer as defined in the accounting surface methodology reports (Wilson and Owen-Joyce, 1994; Owen-Joyce and others, 2000).
Approach
Identify, locate, collect required data, and enter into the Geological Survey National Water Information System (NWIS) (or successor) database wells with the potential to pump water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River, along with data necessary to determine or "presume" if these wells are indeed pumping water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River, and data which will assist in estimating the type and quantity of water use. River pumps will be identified and located; required data will be collected in a manner similar to wells. A photograph of each well and river pump will also be recorded and stored in a database for future retrieval to assist in returning to the well or river pump. Data collected will be used in the analysis required to determine or "presume" if the well is pumping water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River, the type of water use, and assist with estimating the magnitude of water use.
The USGS project manager attends meetings at Reclamation’s request to provide technical and scientific coordination with Reclamation staff, other agencies, and the public. Under the supervision of the project manager, the USGS will send trained technicians into the field to,
- coordinate with appropriate permitting agencies as needed to obtain locations of known permitted well sites;
- visit identified potential well sites and collect data at wells that have been drilled or record that no well has yet been drilled;
- investigate areas for signs of development that indicate water use, and identify and collect data at wells and/or river pumps in use in those areas;
- photograph each well/river pump and measure water levels in wells in the areas where the accounting surface was developed and access is possible;
- enter wells and river pumps into the Geological Survey NWIS database (or successor database) without creating duplicate sites in the database;
- determine when data collection for all sites in an area is completed and identify (with input from Reclamation) subsequent areas for data collection, and plan effective strategies to meet project objectives;
- determine (with input from Reclamation) wells to be instrumented for continuous water-level data collection, purchase equipment as needed, construct and install instrument protective housing at well sites, collect and process data, store data in NWIS;
- continue to collect, process, and store data from wells already instrumented for continuous water-level data collection;
- prepare maps showing altitude of the water table and areas where the water table is more than 50 feet above the accounting surface after precise differential GPS data collection is completed; maps will be published on the web and merged with the data on the interactive web page;
- prepare an interactive web page to visibly display the data collected and merge with the accounting surface maps developed previously in cooperation with Reclamation;
- report progress to Reclamation, coincident with Geological Survey project reviews and create annual work plans for the coming year with input from Reclamation.
- Publications
Below are publications relevant to this project.
Update of the Accounting Surface Along the Lower Colorado River
The accounting-surface method was developed in the 1990s by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Bureau of Reclamation, to identify wells outside the flood plain of the lower Colorado River that yield water that will be replaced by water from the river. This method was needed to identify which wells require an entitlement for diversion of water from the Colorado River and need to beAuthorsStephen M. Wiele, Stanley A. Leake, Sandra J. Owen-Joyce, Emmet H. McGuireFilter Total Items: 41Investigation of recent decadal-scale cyclical fluctuations in salinity in the lower Colorado river
Beginning in the late 1970s, 10- to 15-year cyclical oscillations in salinity were observed at lower Colorado River monitoring sites, moving upstream from the international border with Mexico, above Imperial Dam, below Hoover Dam, and at Lees Ferry. The cause of these cyclical trends in salinity was unknown. These salinity cycles complicate the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's (Reclamation) responsibiAuthorsFred D. Tillman, Alissa L. Coes, David W. Anning, Jon P. Mason, Tyler B. CoplenConceptual and numerical models of dissolved solids in the Colorado River, Hoover Dam to Imperial Dam, and Parker Dam to Imperial Dam, Arizona, California, and Nevada
Conceptual and numerical models were developed to understand and simulate monthly flow-weighted dissolved-solids concentrations in the Colorado River at Imperial Dam. The ability to simulate dissolved-solids concentrations at this location will help the Bureau of Reclamation satisfy the binational agreement on the volume and salinity of Colorado River water delivered to Mexico. A robust spatial- aAuthorsDavid W. Anning, Alissa L. Coes, Jon P. MasonCharacterization of the quality of water, bed sediment, and fish in Mittry Lake, Arizona, 2014–15
Water, bed-sediment, and fish sampling was conducted in Mittry Lake, Arizona, in 2014–15 to establish current water-quality conditions of the lake. The parameters of temperature, dissolved-oxygen concentration, specific conductance, and alkalinity were measured in the field. Water samples were collected and analyzed for dissolved major ions, dissolved trace elements, dissolved nutrients, dissolvedAuthorsEdyth Hermosillo, Alissa L. CoesInitial characterization of the groundwater system near the Lower Colorado Water Supply Project, Imperial Valley, California
In 2009, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the city of Needles, began a study of the hydrogeology along the All-American Canal, which conveys water from the Colorado River to the Imperial Valley. The focus of this study was to gain a better understanding of the effect of lining the All-American Canal, and other management actions, on future total dissolved solids concentrations in grAuthorsAlissa L. Coes, Michael Land, Jill N. Densmore, Michael T. Landrum, Kimberly R. Beisner, Jeffrey R. Kennedy, Jamie P. Macy, Fred D. TillmanPotential depletion of surface water in the Colorado River and agricultural drains by groundwater pumping in the Parker-Palo Verde-Cibola area, Arizona and California
Water use along the lower Colorado River is allocated as “consumptive use,” which is defined to be the amount of water diverted from the river minus the amount that returns to the river. Diversions of water from the river include surface water in canals and water removed from the river by pumping wells in the aquifer connected to the river. A complication in accounting for water pumped by wells ocAuthorsStanley A. Leake, Sandra J. Owen-Joyce, Julian A. HeilmanDischarge and sediment concentration in the Bill Williams River and turbidity in Lake Havasu during and following high releases from Alamo Dam, Arizona, in March and April 2010
Discharges higher than are typically released from Alamo Dam in west-central Arizona were planned and released in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010 to study the effects of these releases on the Bill Williams River. The Bill Williams River Wildlife Refuge is located above the mouth of the Bill Williams River on Lake Havasu, and the river is the subject of ongoing ecological studies. Sediment concentrAuthorsStephen M. Wiele, Jamie P. Macy, Hugh L. Darling, Robert J. Hart, Andrew B. HautzingerSediment Transport in the Bill Williams River and Turbidity in Lake Havasu During and Following Two High Releases from Alamo Dam, Arizona, in 2005 and 2006
Discharges higher than are typically released from Alamo Dam in west-central Arizona were planned and released in 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008 to study the effects of these releases on the Bill Williams River and Lake Havasu, into which the river debouches. Sediment concentrations and water discharges were measured in the Bill Williams River, and turbidity, temperature, and dissolved oxygen were meaAuthorsStephen M. Wiele, Robert J. Hart, Hugh L. Darling, Andrew B. HautzingerUse of Superposition Models to Simulate Possible Depletion of Colorado River Water by Ground-Water Withdrawal
According to the 'Law of the River', wells that draw water from the Colorado River by underground pumping need an entitlement for the diversion of water from the Colorado River. Consumptive use can occur through direct diversions of surface water, as well as through withdrawal of water from the river by underground pumping. To develop methods for evaluating the need for entitlements for Colorado RAuthorsStanley A. Leake, William Greer, Dennis Watt, Paul WeghorstUpdate of the Accounting Surface Along the Lower Colorado River
The accounting-surface method was developed in the 1990s by the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Bureau of Reclamation, to identify wells outside the flood plain of the lower Colorado River that yield water that will be replaced by water from the river. This method was needed to identify which wells require an entitlement for diversion of water from the Colorado River and need to beAuthorsStephen M. Wiele, Stanley A. Leake, Sandra J. Owen-Joyce, Emmet H. McGuireHydrologic conditions in the Bill Williams River National Wildlife Refuge and Planet Valley, Arizona, 2000
During a period of sustained base-flow conditions in the Bill Williams River below Alamo Dam in west central Arizona from March to July 2000, the channel of the river through Planet Valley was dry, and the water table sloped almost due west parallel to the main slope of the flood plain. Water from the river infiltrated into the channel bottom at the head of Planet Valley, moved downgradient in theAuthorsRichard P. Wilson, Sandra J. Owen-JoyceMethod to identify wells that yield water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River downstream from Laguna Dam in Arizona and California
Accounting for the use of Colorado River water is required by the U.S. Supreme Court decree, 1964, Arizona v. California. Water pumped from wells on the flood plain and from certain wells on alluvial slopes outside the flood plain is presumed to be river water and is accounted for as Colorado River water. The accounting-surface method developed for the area upstream from Laguna Dam was modifiedAuthorsSandra J. Owen-Joyce, Richard P. Wilson, Michael C. Carpenter, James B. FinkIdentifying wells downstream from Laguna Dam that yield water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River, Arizona and California
This report summarizes a comprehensive study and development of the method documented in Owen-Joyce and others (2000). That report and one for the area upstream from Laguna Dam (Wilson and Owen-Joyce, 1994) document the accounting-surface method to identify wells that yield water that will be replaced by water from the Colorado River. Downstream from Laguna Dam, the Colorado River is the source fAuthorsSandra J. Owen-Joyce